Today, world leaders and veterans gathered in Normandy to mark the 80th anniversary of the landings on June 6, 1944, when more than 150,000 Alliance soldiers invaded France at a turning point in World War II. Here’s what you need to know about these events.
What is D-Day and why was it called that?
The “D” simply stands for “day.” D-Day is a military term for the first day of an operation. D-Day was the largest naval, air and land military operation ever attempted and marked the beginning of the campaign to liberate Nazi-occupied northwestern Europe. Troops from the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and France attacked German forces on the coast of northern France on 6 June 1944. It involved the simultaneous landing of tens of thousands of troops on five different beaches in Normandy. More than a year in advance, D-Day was originally set for June 5, a date believed to be the most likely to combine calm seas, a full moon and low water at first light. However, due to storms, the departure was postponed by 24 hours to June 6th.
What happened on D-day?
Airborne troops were dropped behind enemy lines in the early hours, while thousands of ships gathered off the coast of Normandy for the main attack. Although they expected an invasion, German military leaders believed that the initial attacks were merely a diversionary tactic. In the weeks preceding the attack it had led them to expect the main invasion further along the coast. The element of surprise helped British troops establish a foothold on a beach codenamed Gold. The British reached Sword Beach.
The American soldiers also managed to land on the westernmost beach, Utah, without suffering serious casualties. But on nearby Omaha Beach, American forces suffered heavy losses. The naval barrage and bombing of the German defenses proved ineffective and the Americans clashed with a small unit of German troops. Shortly after midnight, three U.S. and British airborne divisions, with over 23,000 men, took off to secure the flanks of the beaches. A myriad of ships and landing craft gathered at a point in the Channel nicknamed “Piccadilly Circus”. From 06:30, the first five assault divisions were brought to the beaches under cover of naval bombardment.
Throughout the day the troops landed on the beaches. By midnight, the Allies had secured their beachheads and pushed into the interior of Gold, Juno, Sword, and Utah.
How many soldiers died on D-Day and how many troops participated?
On D-Day alone, as many as 4,400 soldiers of the combined Allied forces died. About 9,000 were wounded or missing. The total German losses that day are not known, but are estimated at between 4,000 and 9,000 men. Thousands of French civilians also perished, mostly due to bombings carried out by Allied forces.
Up to 7,000 ships and landing craft were involved, bringing a total of 156,000 men and 10,000 vehicles to the five beaches along the carefully selected stretch of Normandy coast. The landings would not have been possible without the support of massive air and naval forces, much stronger than the German ones.
What happened after D-Day?
Although Allied forces had gained a foothold in France by the end of D-Day, they were for a time at risk of being pushed back into the sea. They had to continue to build up their forces faster than the Germans could do theirs. The advance through the narrow alleys and towns of Normandy, defended by staunch defenders, was slow. But, in numerical superiority and with the support of air superiority, they managed to overcome the considerable resistance, albeit at a high cost..
By the time they liberated Paris in late August 1944, about 10 percent of the two million Allied soldiers who had reached France were dead, wounded or missing.
How many D-Day veterans are still alive?
It is unclear how many D-Day veterans are still alive. Everyone is now 90 or 100 years old. Just over 100 British veterans are thought to have survived. BBC royal correspondent Sean Coughlan says 23 will attend the 80th anniversary commemorations in Normandy and a further 21 will attend a commemorative event at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. Two dozen U.S. veterans are also expected to travel to France, according to the American Battle Monuments Commission, which oversees U.S. cemeteries and monuments abroad.
Normandy, in the Visitor Center of the Colleville American Cemetery
#DDay #happened #Normandy #landings #mega #operation
